The Hunt is On
by VA23
Summary: Even ninjas can be hunted. When several corpses are found with their skulls missing, Team 7 is sent to find the perpetrators. But in this hunt, are they the Predators or the prey?


I wrote this when I was still grieving over the loss of my other story. I just now remembered it and decided to post it.

I own neither Predator nor Naruto.

_Yautja (Predator) language _

All was quiet as something made its way through the stars. It was impossible to tell what it was for it had no definite shape or color to it. This was thanks to the cloaking device that enabled theYautja ship to make its way through the infinite vacuum of space without hindrance from outside sources.

The ship was tiny, only 170 meters long. This was due to it being a ship of transportation and not a full war vessel. The ship had only a command deck, engine room, cryo bay (for long journeys) and a trophy/ war room. It was here in the trophy room that three humanoid figures could be seen preparing. But if you thought they were human, you would be sadly mistaken.

All of them stood well above 7 feet tall, and the tallest cleared 8 feet itself. Their skin was a mix of pale and reddish-brown, like that of slightly burnt meat. Around the head was what might be considered hair in the style of dreadlocks, although its' true purpose was unknown.

But it was the faces that garnered the most attention. The Yautja's faces were strange and scary. They had yellow eyes with black pupils. The scariest part was the mouth, which looked like mutated crab with four mandibles that protruded outward, with two on the top and two on the bottom. Behind these was a small mouth with two fangs on the top and five teeth on the bottom. Truly this was a face meant to scare the living hell out of anything unfortunate enough to gaze upon them.

All three wore the same outfit. It was a simple mesh jumpsuit which was used to protect from extreme heat and cold. Over the jumpsuit, they wore all metal armor, consisting of a breastplate, shoulder plates, shin and foot armor made of the same unknown alloy. It was light but extremely durable, and could only receive damage from a powerful blow or from acid like the blood of the Xenomorphs.

The Yautja warriors were making sure all their weapons and hunting tech were in proper working condition. The biggest one was sheathing and unsheathing his twelve inch wrist blades. The deadly weapon made an audible "Snick" sound every time. The giant grunted in satisfaction. His name was Wan'ryoku, and he was easily the strongest warrior in over 20 lunar units. He could lift and throw nearly a ton by himself. Indeed, his muscles were so large he had to have his armor custom made.

The one sitting down was going over the mission specs. This was Sek'kou and he was checking and rechecking geographical maps, recent thermal activity, weather changes, and all known info on the prey. Absolutely no information was missed under his piercing gaze.

The last of the trio was in a corner by itself, fixing a bug it had found in one of the Medicomps. This was Hai'teku and he was in charge of making sure all the gadgetry was in perfect condition. If he hadn't noticed the bug in the Medicomp, then one of his injured teammates would find his wound accelerating instead of healing.

All of them sat in silence. No words needed to be said as the air was thick with the tension and excitement they were all feeling. For the trio, this would be their first hunt. And it promised to be a most worthy hunt at that, because the prey for this trip would be one of the most dangerous in the galaxy, second only to the infernal Xenomorphs.

They would be hunting _oomans_. But not regular _oomans_, for these had special powers which could bend the elements to their will. They called themselves _neenjas_.

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As the silence ticked on, Wan'ryoku clicked his mandibles in annoyance. Their leader for the hunt was already several single units late and the Yautja prized themselves on being punctual. He addressed Sek'kou, speaking in a myriad of clicks and hisses. "_Where is Shur'you? He is late._"

Sek'kou didn't look up from the map of the _Countree of Fyre_ as he answered, _"Do not worry, brother. I am sure he will arrive shortly." _At this, both he and Hai'teku chuckled, as if from a private joke shared between the two.

This nearly set off Wan'ryoku abnormally short temper, for he thought they were laughing at him. He decided not to retaliate as it would do the hunt no good if the participants were trying to kill each other instead of the prey.

"_I'm just saying that the uekte should be on time if we are ourselves,"_ Wan'ryoku seethed. _"How can I be late if I've been here before you?"_ a voice said from nowhere. Wan'ryoku paled as Shur'you deactivated his active camouflage in front of him.

Shur'you was an impressive sight, even among the other Yautja. He stood exactly at 7' 7'' and had well chiseled muscles. His body was heavily scared from many fights with his prey. The mask he wore over his face was silver in color unlike the metal worn by other huntsmen. Upon the forehead of the mask there was a scar in the form of a lightning bolt criss-crossed by an X. It signified the highest honor a Yautja could ever hope to receive. It showed that this hunter had participated in over 100 hunts, and was successful each time.

Shur'you reached up and unclasped the mask. His face was as scared as his body. But it was the right eye that caught the other's attention. His original eye had been lost when he had taken on a Xenomorph Queen. The Queen was the fiercest opponent in the galaxy, and any Yautja would be considered suicidal to take on one alone. But Shur'you had succeeded in taking down the ultimate foe, but not before the Queen had gouged his right eye out with her terrible claws.

Before he removed the skull, as per the usual Yautja ritual, he had first pierced the skull and removed her eye. He then, in a most foolish attempt, had used his Medicomp to attach the eye to his own brain. The eye that now gazed at the young Yautja was green with a black, silted iris.

For one terrifying moment, Wan'ryoku thought that Shur'you would punish him severely. But instead the older Yautja chuckled and patted him on the shoulder. _"You have no need to fear young one. This was merely a lesson in making sure your equipment is working right. If you had bothered to check your mask's vision modes, like your hunt brothers did, then you would have seen me." _

"_Forgive me sir. It shall not happen again"_ Wan'ryoku said, grateful to keep his fingers.

Shur'you nodded and then addressed all three of them in a commanding tone. _"All right younglings! Get everything together and meet me at the pods. The hunt is on!" _When he finished, he let out a primal roar that the other three joined in on.

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There are two types of stargazers in the world: those who look up at the stars in the name of science, and those who look up just to appreciate their beauty.

Naruto Uzumaki placed himself in the second category. It had been two and a half years since he sat under the stars in his home village of Konaha, and he enjoyed every second of it. He couldn't believe how much everyone had changed. Naruto could tell that everyone was way stronger. They had been made Chunin/Jounin while he was still, technically, a Gennin.

He was most surprised at how Sakura-chan had gotten so strong from Tsunade's lessons. She had nearly split the earth in two when the pair of them had retaken Kakashi's bell test. He laughed remembering how easy it was to get the bells from their perverted sensei.

Now all that was left for him to do was to become Hokage and fulfill his wish of having the whole village respect him. He decided to strengthen the wish on four shooting stars he saw falling through the sky. It wouldn't hurt to make a wish on a star, right?

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Tell me what you think and I'll try to get another chapter out. But Ninja Rider will defiantly be next.


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